I was surprised just how like Top Gear the first episode was...
But everything was just this side of keeping the BBC Worldwide legal letters at bay for copyright infringements.
So much for May and Hammond saying how the events of last year 'refocused' them on making a better car show.
I'd pass comment on the 2nd episode, but my umm 'source' has gone to tremendously laborious methods to keep all the ambient sound effects in, but dip all the links to camera and film voice overs...
First episode was very exciting and hyped up but second episode was incredibly dull. Felt like a chore trying to get through it to be honest. Reminded me why I stopped watching Top Gear in the first place, it really is the same old each week. Thought at the very least that the dead celebrity joke would be dropped after the first week.
The less said about the SAS challenge the better… are they just trying to do straight up slapstick now? No notion of pretending that this stuff wasn't scripted?
You mirror my thoughts about the first two shows 100%.
Still, it's now the third TV show to employ a tent as a studio !!!
I'm glad someone else thinks the same. I honestly thought the first episode was very good. Over the top introduction, sure, but anything less would have been a disappointment. Lots of funny bits like introducing the new track, even the studio bits.
It always felt to me that, with exception, once you've seen one episode of Top Gear you've seen every episode of Top Gear. I was hoping this new show would break from that, by physically being in a different place each week… but it doesn't seem like it so far.
I don't want to justify piracy - I'd be the first to argue that people should stick to legitimate methods. However the fact that Is that Top Gear has over the past decade or so become an extraordinary sales success for BBC Worldwide, with fans across the English speaking world and beyond. So when the Grand Tour was launched on a service only available in two English speaking markets (as well as Germany, Austria, and Japan) it would only be natural that viewers in Ireland, Canada, Australia, NZ and other countries would be curious to see what is going on.
In mid-November Amazon promised the rest of the world that the Grand Tour would be available worldwide in December, but there is still no word on a launch. It may be that we're not missing much, but it'd be nice to be able to judge that for ourselves.
Part of me does wonder if the illegal downloading was part of the Amazon plan. Let people get the first series off wherever - it'll be the next series when they get the lawyers out to go after the dalek voiced versions on You Tube and the various torrent sites.
Or are they making so much off Amazon Prime customers (whether intentitally, or those that don't click the box after wanting 'next day delivery') that actually, they don't care - as long as some people are paying for it - they have secondary over the air broadcast rights sewn up, and it's still creating a buzz.
I also don't justify piracy - but, if I paid £79 for prime to watch a slightly more fast cut, lower soundmixed version of a Stig-less Top Gear - I'd be seriously annoyed.
I also don't justify piracy - but, if I paid £79 for prime to watch a slightly more fast cut, lower soundmixed version of a Stig-less Top Gear - I'd be seriously annoyed.
I took the £59 offer when it was on. The show is good, but the rest of Amazon Video doesn't seem as vast in comparison to Netflix.
I didn't know until the other day having Prime meant having access to Amazon Music (i.e. their equivalent of Spotify).
I think as long as they get the numbers for now, legal or illegally, I can't see Amazon being too bothered.
Do they still do the free months trial - the trial most people expect would just renew for another month but in fact stings you for a whole year. I suspect anyone really wanting it in areas that can get Amazon Prime would just get the free trial and get their Christmas shopping done in the meantime.
A bit of maths suggests it would take nearly 550,000 memberships to fund the reported £130m spent on the series (over 3 years), and currently Amazon Prime has a reported 2m members in the UK - so a quarter of that fee is going straight to the pockets of Clarkson and co.
Do they still do the free months trial - the trial most people expect would just renew for another month but in fact stings you for a whole year. I suspect anyone really wanting it in areas that can get Amazon Prime would just get the free trial and get their Christmas shopping done in the meantime.
A bit of maths suggests it would take nearly 550,000 memberships to fund the reported £130m spent on the series (over 3 years), and currently Amazon Prime has a reported 2m members in the UK - so a quarter of that fee is going straight to the pockets of Clarkson and co.
Yes they still do the trial but it now renews on a monthly basis.